Courts / Louth / Report
Real IRA bomb conspirators are awarded compensation for unlawful incarceration
Summary
In a High Court decision, Mr Justice Cian Ferriter awarded €2,500 in damages to each of three men—Fintan O'Farrell, Declan Rafferty and Michael McDonald—who had been unlawfully detained in Portlaoise Prison. The men, all from County Louth, had been arrested in 2001 while attempting to procure arms for the Real IRA and were extradited to England, where they pleaded guilty to conspiracy to cause explosions and received 28‑year sentences. In 2014 the Irish High Court found that the warrants transferring them from an English prison to Ireland were defective, as they referred to the full 28‑year term rather than the 18 years and 8 months they should have served under Irish remission rules. The court held that the men's continued detention on the basis of an invalid Irish order constituted false imprisonment, but noted that their conduct in serious terrorist offences limited their interest in liberty.
Who, what, where, when and why
What: Report matter: Real IRA bomb conspirators are awarded compensation for unlawful incarceration. Charges or matters: conspiracy to cause explosions as well as charges under the UK's 2000 Terrorism Act and ultimately received prison sentences of 28 years. Procedural stage: sentence
When:
- July 2001 Incident
- 2023-01-13 Publication
Why: The court made the ruling because of the differences between sentencing systems in the UK and Ireland, including that prisoners in Ireland are entitled to one quarter remission of their sentences whereas in the UK one third remission normally applies. CNI source report
Case subjects
Defendant
Charges: conspiracy to cause explosions as well as charges under the UK's 2000 Terrorism Act and ultimately received prison sentences of 28 years (Admitted)
Plea: Guilty
Outcome: As a result of their release, the plaintiffs spent less time in prison as a whole than they were lawfully sentenced to serve by the English courts, the judge said.
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